Moshe Allon, owner of Immediate Medical Care talks with media in front of his urgent care facility at 2640 East League City Parkway Thursday afternoon after a patient visiting West Africa became sick and showed symptoms of Ebola. The patient later tested negative for the disease. less

Moshe Allon, owner of Immediate Medical Care talks with media in front of his urgent care facility at 2640 East League City Parkway Thursday afternoon after a patient visiting West Africa became sick and showed ... more

Photo: Kar B Hlava

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The media takes up positions in front of Immediate Medical Care at 2640 East League City Parkway in League City after a patient visiting West Africa became sick and showed symptoms of Ebola. The patient later tested negative the disease. less

The media takes up positions in front of Immediate Medical Care at 2640 East League City Parkway in League City after a patient visiting West Africa became sick and showed symptoms of Ebola. The patient later ... more

Photo: Kar B Hlava

Image 3 of 3

Patient’s Ebola-like symptoms not Ebola

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A patient’s symptoms and recent return from Africa triggered the precautionary closure of a League City emergency clinic Friday to give officials time to rule out the Ebola virus.

At 3:45 p.m. Galveston County Health Dept. and UT Medical Branch officials confirmed the patient does not have Ebola.

“Upon additional screening, UTMB health care workers determined that the patient did not exhibit any signs of Ebola virus disease and had not traveled to any of the African countries that have had the Ebola epidemic,” UTMB and GCHD said in a a joint statement. “The GCHD and UTMB have therefore determined that this patient definitively does not have Ebola and that there is no risk to Galveston County communities associated with this patient.”

The League City Police Department received a call at 11:22 a.m. from Intermediate Medical Care, located at 2640 E League City Parkway. A medical worker stated a patient who had recently traveled from Africa was at the facility and exhibiting symptoms that could be consistent with Ebola.

“The minute we found out he was coming from West Africa we called 911 and following that we decided to get someone to pick him up,” Moshe Allon, owner of Immediate Medical Care, said.

Police and a Hazmat team closed off the facility and immediate area, and the Galveston County Health District was notified.

League City Emergency Services personnel contacted the Center for Disease Control and based upon the countries the patient visited the agency believes there is very little to zero risk of exposure to Ebola.

The patient, a resident of League City, was transported to UTMB for testing. Personnel or patients at the clinic were kept quarantined temporarily.

“Everything was done right, it’s very scary, but if you take the right steps we will be fine,” Allon said.

Asked if he had any concerns of future similar cases, Allon said it “was very possible.”

“I am very relieved that the patient is healthy and everybody in the clinic is safe and secure,” he said.